When Lionel Messi Met Cristiano Ronaldo

We must be at the point where statisticians are being employed around the globe just to keep track of the records being set by Lionel Messi.

This past week Messi beat the Barcelona all-time goal scoring record of Cesar Rodriguez that had stood for over half a century. They say that records are made to be broken but this one was completely shattered. After a midweek hat trick against Granada Messi's goal tally stood at 234 goals for Barcelona ...and he is only 24.

Lionel Messi Vector Portrait (Photo credit: Vectorportal)

Messi continued his crusade against defenders and goalkeepers everywhere with his 55th goal of the season (all competitions) in a Spanish League match against Mallorca on Saturday.

It has been a decade since any other player at reached such heights in a European League and when you consider that Messi could play in another 15 matches, a season ending tally of 70 is within the realms of possibility.

If Messi can avoid a career-limiting injury over the next five to six seasons there seems to be no end to the sort of numbers the young Argentinean might accumulate. And it's not just goals.

He has been voted "World Player of the Year" for the last three seasons and that followed a hat trick of "World Soccer Young Player of the Year" awards. He has already accumulated more than 50 individual awards in a career that has yet to hit double figures in years of service.

The latest round of record breaking sent writers scurrying to their keyboards.

"Is Messi the greatest player of all time," or "will he become the greatest to have ever played the game?"

For many the present tends to trump the past when the title of "the greatest ever" is debated. But wiser heads know that the canny lens of time is needed before making such grand proclamations.

It is widely accepted that the three greatest players since the end of World War 2 have been Alfredo Di Stefano, Pele, and Maradona. Di Stefano never played in the World Cup Finals but is synonymous with the Real Madrid side that won the first five European Cups between 1956 and 1960.